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Games and Game Development, Personal Blog

Vacation and Goals

My visit home to Louisville has been splendid thus far! Nick and I hit up the Speed Museum, Science Center, and Slugger Museum. We ate at Dragon King’s Daughter, Ramsi’s, Old Spaghetti Factory, Coco’s Chocolate (fondue!!) and Nord’s Doughnuts. We met Ian’s puppy and played many games with friends and hung out with my family.

Now he’s off to Sarasota so we can spend Christmas with our respective families, and then I’ll join up with him again in Florida afterwards. Josh checked in on Mr. Davis for me at the Cat Hotel, and apparently he’s settled quite nicely and made friends with the other cats! Yay!

Meanwhile, I’m starting to ponder my goals for 2011. Last year the goals were: get a cat (check!) and go to Japan (check!). I already have a few goals in mind financially, but I’m molding some others in the meantime.

First, I’m feeling purge-ish again, and every time i get in the mood to get rid of stuff, the circle of influence of my grip shrinks. This time it’s the old game consoles that are feeling invasive to my space. I’ve been really thinking a lot about the way I consume media. Earlier in the year I borrowed games to try them (offering pies in exchange) and I liked the way it felt. I felt motivated to finish the games because I had to return them, and didn’t feel any guilt over a game half started and then sitting and staring at me from the PS3.

I find myself drawn more and more to Steam and PSN and investigating Wiiware titles because of the lack of physical “stuff” that comes attached to them. Perhaps I will pick up the borrowing habit once more in the New Year.

Which leads me to my second goal of consuming more games more regularly. Right now I play games in long stretches and revel in them, such as Starcraft and WoW and Minecraft. But as has been pointed out time and again, one of the flaws of my industry is how much really good content is pushed out so frequently. I feel like everyone knows someone who has a mountain of unwrapped games that they haven’t even touched yet.

I’ve attributed this need to keep up with games to be like practicing an instrument, and I think this year I need to buckle down on that and really set aside time each day for games. NEW games, I mean, not just the ones I’m in love with and playing anyway. If I can work it into my routine I think I can pull it off, but new routines are very hard to get rolling!

We shall see what the new year brings.

Games and Game Development, Personal Blog

Ballergiving

I had a wonderful evening of games and stories and food with the ballers!

Beatles Rock Band is a blast, and far superior to normal Rock Band, and even Lego Rock Band, in my opinion. Most of this is due to the classy visual between-gig load screens, and the hilarity of multiple part harmony with Scott and Maria. I would have loved to sing, but alas, my voice is completely lost, so I stuck with the guitar.

I can only use Rock Band style guitars, because I can only use the meedley string buttons at the base of the neck. My hands are too small for the normal buttons, as are Beth’s, which lead to this conversation snippet.

Beth: I can’t use this, my hands are too small.
Maria: Mine are too, that’s why I don’t have to give prostate exams!

After dinner and pie and catching up on stories with the Clarks, we gathered to play Shadows Over Camelot with the Merlin’s Company expansion. I think the expansion is an excellent supplement to the game, but Merlin couldn’t help the knights this time, as I had my first successful game as traitor. Muahahaha! The lack of voice didn’t help, as all my commands and narration turned to diabolical hissing.

Nevertheless, it was a fun game.

I also got to see Brenna, who was very happy to see me again, and George (who is always happy to see anyone). Hooray for puppies!

Hopefully I’ll be able to hang out with people again some tomorrow night. There is a plot of my brother and sister-in-law to go see Return to Oz, which is this week’s midnight cult movie at Baxter. I would totally go see it, but my flight leaves at 6am Sunday morning, and a midnight movie would probably end up with me staying up all night.

We shall see, we shall see…

Personal Blog

Thanksgiving

I’m sitting in the airport, waiting around for my red-eye to board. I’m very excited about going home! LAX is bustling with holiday travelers, and there’s a guy sitting next to me using his dog to pick up chicks (well, I dunno if he’s doing it intentionally, but he sure is attracting all the ladies!)

Anyway, I’ll be happy to see my family tomorrow, and hopefully catch my friends before skipping back out here on Sunday. I’m mostly looking forward to getting back to Kentucky for a little bit. It always seems to recharge my roots when I spend time there. I miss its beauty more this year, I think, since I’ve spent the last 6 months in the desert. Well, LA likes to pretend real hard that it isn’t a desert, but if you squint your eyes and tilt your head, you can see right through to the rocks and sand.

Even in the winter, Kentucky has a special beauty to it.

What I’m thankful for…

Games and Game Development, Personal Blog

Decemberball

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I adore the Tuesday Night Ballers, and I often think of them fondly at various times in my most recent adventures. The times when we are able to get together have been more and more adventurous as time goes on.

Tonight, everyone was “on,” and it was brilliant. Not 2 minutes would pass without laughter or wit or some clever exchange sparking another clever exchange. I love them all! Scott, Will, Ian, Brendan, Maria, Matt, Kyle, DC, Beth, and I had dinner at the Mayan Gypsy and launched the night with much gaming. Reviews!

Lots of games…

Personal Blog

Food Tour continues…

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On a less dorky and less melancholy note, I’ve knocked two more places of my Food Tour list. Today I am enjoying a delicious sandwich from the liquor store deli, and on Friday night we ate at Lynn’s. Granted, all I had there was a huge plate of sweet potato fries, but that’s all I really wanted anyway.

I also got to see Strother. Hooray!! Strother is one of my all time favorite people, and I am thrilled that we got to hang out!

As for the rest of the Food Tour, I’m scheduled to eat at Vietnam Kitchen on Saturday with Ken (anyone else is invited). Pink Door and Gumbo-a-Go-Go still need to be worked in, Jersey Mike’s I can grab for myself for lunch some day, and the bakery will surely sneak up on me one of these mornings.

Hooray for fooooood!

Personal Blog

Louisville Food Tour continues….

Mayan Cafe and Maido can be checked off my food tour list. Hooray!

And, in a shocking display of daring, at both places I tried something I DON’T NORMALLY GET!! (gasp!) At Maido I tried their udon soup, which was quite tasty, but the helping was huuuuuge. Granted, everything else I got was normal (miso soup, shrimp tempura, and one of about 4 sushi rolls that I repeatedly get), but the udon was different.

At the Mayan Cafe I got the Shrimp Invasion, which was deliciously tasty, and fried plantains of course. Though it was tasty, I will probably revert to my always getting the Uxmal Salmon, because it remains my favorite.

Now to approach the rest of the list…I would almost certainly have liquor store deli for lunch today, but I am carless, and thus stranded. I shall have to arrange otherwise.

In other news, the ballers played Apples to Apples last night, and it was predictably enjoyable. I’ve been sleeping and reading for leisure on my break days, and have begun poking at Actionscript 3 to prepare myself for the spring semester.

I’m trying not to work too hard, though.

Personal Blog
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I often praise Louisville for its delicious food opportunities, and since I’m in town for a bit, I intend to do a food tour. It’s a trick to be on vacation, actually, because I’m still making a list and accomplishing tasks. Let’s see what’s on the agenda..

1) Penn Station — CHECK! Scott and I went for lunch today
2) Maido
3) Mayan Gypsy
4) Pink Door
5) Gumbo-a-go-go
6) Lynn’s Paradise Cafe
7) Nord’s Bakery
8) Jersey Mike’s
9) Vietnam Kitchen
10) Liquor Store Deli

Am I forgetting anything?

Personal Blog

Home again!

After an incredibly intense-yet-rewarding semester, and then an incredibly busy-yet-productive 2 weeks of working on the Bryan Scary video, I am FINALLY home. Home, and able to rest! I say that I shall sleep for days, but it’s easier said than done.

I’ve never been very good at relaxing, especially when I’m wired to work my tail off. However, I am under orders from Andy to do so, so I must figure out a way!

At any rate, I got to see the ballers, and Brenna, and play some Rock Band. Tomorrow I’ll get started on sleeping for several days.

Personal Blog

Christmas Times

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Merry Christmas times to all! The holidays have been really nice, if not shaken with the feeling of impending change. I think this year was a “transition” Christmas.

My parents sold their house (yaaay!) but found out that the condo they had intended to buy had been sold out from under them (boooo). This caused much undo stress, but they have found a place to rent for awhile downtown. Still, come January 31st, the house will be gone, items will be shuffled into storage, and madness will ensue.

On Christmas night we had a great get together at my parents’ place. Normally Nancy would always host a dinner on Christmas night, so we decided to host a shindig in her honor. We must have lit every candle in the house (Nancy loved candles) and we had Oysters Rockefeller to toast in the New Year (another Nancy tradition). The party doubled as an official “goodbye” to our house, but in spite of sentiment, the evening was full of laughter and good times and no tears.

It was quite a practical Christmas for me, gift-wise, I got a bike mount for my car, which is exciting. I also got metal mixing bowls, which is very exciting, for now I can make meringue pies! My grandmother got me a silicon muffin tin…which…I suppose can’t really be called a “tin” at all….muffin silicon? Anyway! This, along with Scott’s gifts of a new grater and juicer, are indicative of much baking and cooking to come.

In spite of the rain and cold, it was a very warm Christmas. I hope everyone has had a pleasant holiday season!